What is community anyway?
Hi all,
We were thinking that it would be good to get some discussion going on the blog. I just found this statement about community, which I thought was really striking.
“Community becomes totalitarian when its only purpose is to foster a sense of belonging in order to overcome the fragility of the lone individual. Christian community, life in the colony, is not primarily about togetherness. It is about the way of Jesus Christ with those whom he calls to himself. It is about disciplining our wants and needs in congruence with a story, which gives us the resources to lead truthful lives. In living out the story together, togetherness happens, but only as a by-product of the main project of trying to be faithful to Jesus.”
(From Stanley Hauerwas, a theologian)
I found it positive because it is so Christ-centred and discourages us from being content with our earthly representation of heaven without keeping in touch with the real thing! But so often we see Jesus in people around us - he communicates with us through them, and shows his love through their love for us - and this is good! Does the quote downplay this too much? Comments welcome…
